1. Actively Embrace Mobile.

Mobile Age

We are actively in the mobile age, and the use of mobile technology is only going to continue to grow. You might have a website that looks okay on a mobile phone, but an app will truly take you fully into the mobile age.

2. Accelerate your Innovation.

Companies must always innovate and making changes in technology might give you ideas about where you can invest your time and money next. One improvement begets the next, so start innovating to make tremendous gains.

3. Lay Groundwork for the Future.

The future of business is uncertain, but it’s certainly coming fast. If you are already one step behind the curve, how many steps will you be behind when the next wave hits. Ride the mobile wave toward whatever is around the next corner and the transition will be smoother.

4. Build your Brand.

Build your Brand

A mobile app is an excellent way to promote your brand. The more interaction you have with customers, and the more they see what you’re offering, the more brand recognition you will have. You want customers to see your company name and product as often as possible. An app is another great way to showcase what you do.

5. Get Customers on your Website.

An app can create a simple pathway between a mobile device and your website. Customers use the app, but have the option to move to the website to perform more complicated functions or see more choices.

6. Gather Customer Reviews.

Customers on mobile devices have a very simple time leaving reviews, especially if you use a quick pop-up style review that simply asks for a quick ranking. Customers can easily click on a thumbs-up or a smiley face and you gather valuable feedback with minimal interruption.

7. Create New Revenue Opportunities.

Create New Revenue Opportunities

An app can open up new revenue streams both now and in the future. You might add advertisements in your app or monetize it directly in other ways. Some apps include upgrades and in-app purchases as well that can boost revenue.

8. Speed up Transactions.

To run on an iPhone, apps have to be fast. Streamlined and simple, customers expect their apps to be the fastest way to access information and make purchases. This might make it easier than ever for customers to finish loading up a cart and enter payment details.

9. Full Integrate Social Media.

An app on a mobile phones is a natural place to integrate social media. Full immersion into the world of mobile apps is going to include at least some social media, so this is an area where there is a natural overlap and you can economize and become more efficient in your developments and accounts.

10. Embrace Smart Phone Use.

Embrace Smart Phone Use

By 2020 there will be almost 3 billion smart phone users in the world. Smartphones run on apps. If you want to be where your customers are, you and your business need to be embracing the age of the smartphones and designing business solutions with these users in mind.

11. Share Product Information.

Customers are often eager to share information using their phones. They will share their location, their experiences, their critiques and their reviews of all number of things. Ask customers for detailed reviews and information about products through your app, and they are likely to leave you something that adds even more benefit than a basic thumbs up (or thumbs down).

12. Allow Greater Customer Interaction.

An app gives customers an easy way to contact you or your customer service team. Contact information can be included easily. Additionally, smart phones make a great way to set up some one-way communication with alerts and notifications sent to customers overnight for them to check first thing in the morning.

13. Streamline Customer Activity.

There are fewer places to include distractions on a mobile app. You area almost forced to choose what matters most on your website and streamline it with a mobile app. Make the customer experience simple to navigate and complete and customers will often thank you with the desired action.

14. Build more Dedicated Customer Bases.

Build more Dedicated Customer Bases

Customers have choices from thousands of apps, but they don’t actually use thousands, or hundreds, or even dozens. Most customers have preferred apps that they have downloaded and prefer to use for certain transactions. If customers download your app, you can rely on them to be pretty faithful.

15. Stay Current with Customers.

There are endless options of things to look at and things to buy. Customers are often paralyzed simply by the volume of things to decide on a daily basis. Your app may not always be the first app they open or use on a daily basis, but your customers are going to see it sitting on their phone. This keeps your brand and name current in the mind of the customers at least.

16. Allow Better Business Communication.

Apps don’t just open up additional lines of communication between customers and marketing. The app can also make it easier to communicate with employees and other professionals, especially if the app works where other phone services do not. An app can also create a single place for communication, helping to simplify at least some record keeping.

17. Consider Tracking Locations.

A mobile app might also have the functionality to track your customer’s locations. Where are your customers using the app and your services? This can be valuable information to have as you consider expanding your business or streamlining services.

18. Allows Customized Experiences.

Customize

Customers increasingly expect a personalized experience. Mobile apps allow for certain levels of customization. Customers can add their preferences and goals. They can mark things with stars for favorites or remove things from their viewing experience. They can make your app work the way they want it to if you design it well.

19. Create Easy Access to a Loyalty Program.

A mobile app is the perfect place to insert a customer loyalty program. Have customers scan their phones, or simply use their login information as an account to reward customers after a certain number or amount of purchases.

20. Simplifies Push Notifications.

People with smart phones definitely look at their phones in the morning, but they also check their phones when they receive notifications. Use push notifications sparingly to alert customers to special sales or limited time offers and bring in new business.

21. Prepare for the Next Technology Trend.

Who knew mobile technology was going to be this big a decade ago? Especially as it is not done growing! What is next in the world of personal technology and what can you do to capture a place in that future market? Designing multiple ways to interact with your business now can give you options for where to jump when the next big thing arrives.

22. Everybody’s Doing It.

Mobile App

Finally, one last compelling reason to consider creating a mobile app is simply because everyone else is. Customers expect to find a decent app for stores and services they use. If you don’t have one and customers are looking for it, you’re looking at a huge gap in customer experience and in your bottom line.

Small businesses have so much to provide for their customers it can feel like a burden to create even one more thing. But this is the nature of business – the customers prefer to use their phones for so many things, that it simply makes sense to utilize their phones as best you can. Create the sort of app that your customers can easily put to use and your bottom line with thank you.

Oleg Kaluger

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Comments

33 Comments on “22 Reasons Why You Need a Mobile App for Your Small Business”

Hi Oleg,
We are living in a digital edge where both internet and everything else is going mobile. And think for a moment the fact that mobile internet users have surpassed desktop internet first for the first time – meaning that more people are on mobile apps than on desktop. These gives you the incentives to own a mobile app for your small business.

As you rightly mentioned, “Today’s small businesses offer their customers fully integrated web solutions and highly personalized customer service.” Yes, the best part of this is that it all happens via mobile devices.

What are you waiting for? Go get a mobile app for your small business.

Thank you for the comment,
Very true, more people are browsing the websites and buying stuff from their cell phones than ever and this stat is only going to increase further in the near future. In such a condition, having an app makes total sense!

Welcome to Temok and thank you for the comment,
I guess there are some tools but since I haven’t tested them personally, so can’t make a recommendation,
but will check through and update you if I get something good,

Welcome to Temok and thank you for the comment,
Time for development of an Android app would totally depend on what the app is supposed to do,
We have a team of developers which greatly reduce the development time compared to what a single developer can do,

Hi Oleg,
Wow…now you have the wheels spinning in my head. I do need an app when it comes to my website. I know that more and more people are using their mobile devices than a computer these days. I thought I was good to go because my site loads well on a phone, but there is so much more I can do with an app.
Customer service is so important and with an app I can communicate in real time (Unless I’m sleeping lol). Also, it does wonders with a brand. I can imagine someone pressing my app before anything else they do. Now all I need to do is have a plan and get an app.
Thanks so much for your advice.
-Donna

thank you for the comment,
You have a very strong blog with a loyal following, am sure an app will surely help. That way you will be able to get further closer to your readers because apps are great when it comes to showing notifications of new posts or replies to comments etc.

The cell phone is surely the most closest gadget today, it is one thing that stays with us 24/7 … laptops are turned off when going to sleep but cell phones always stays on!

Hello Oleg
Hope you are doing great
Yes i totally agrees with you I too believe that every blog must have an app to support it. It not only creates the brand image but also help to generate greater traffic on the blog
Thanks for sharing this post
Do share more such informative post
Regards
Darleen

Those are some compelling reasons. I am just starting out a business and I am overwhelmed by all of the things that I need to get done, but I will keep this in mind. As a consumer, I am very very very resistant on getting additional apps on my phone unless there is an incredibly compelling reason to do so.

Welcome to Temok and thank you for the comment,
Yes, there’s so many things to do that one can get easily overwhelmed – but if you make a written plan and cover in details what you want to do, then you can simplify the process,

I agree that as a consumer, I too use minimum apps but at the same time I have seen friends and family use any and every app that they come across. So, I guess if we are here to sell – getting our apps right inside our customers cell phones isn’t a difficult prospect!

You have mentioned some great Points here. The number of mobile users today is higher than the number of desktop users!
Most of the time spent on mobile devices is spent using apps. Therefore, Mobile apps are becoming the dominant form of digital interaction and Mobile apps can help a small business owner to increase sales.

Yeah, I agree with you. These days, mobile app is very much necessary for small businesses. You can take your business online by creating your mobile app which helps to attract or gain more users towards your particular business. I especially liked the 4th and 7th point. Thanks for sharing.

Hi Oleg,
Good to be here again, I am here via Bizsugar wherein this post is curated and I upvoted and dropped a comment.
Yes, we need to cop up with the technology otherwise we will lag behind.
As the statistics say the mobile users increasing day by day and the percentage of web browsers too is increased accordingly and in such case if we have App of our own the reachability will increase.
thanks for sharing the various aspects of this technology.
Keep sharing
Best Regards
~ Philip

Welcome to Temok and thank you for the comment,
Good to know that you have come from BizSugar – it is one of my favorite social site, always happy to see our content trending there. Thank you for the vote up!

An app does make a big difference, that way you are far too closer to your clients than any mobile responsive website will ever be! With a website – which is a must-have anyway, you remain one in several tabs … but with an app you get a dedicated access,

You have mentioned some great Points here. The number of mobile users today is higher than the number of desktop users! Mobile App is must for a Business as it’s time for Digital Marketing. Most of users have Mobile 90% uses into Digital Marketing. So Mobile App is important for a Business.Most of the time spent on mobile devices is spent using apps. Therefore, Mobile apps are becoming the dominant form of digital interaction and Mobile apps can help a small business owner to increase sales.